Help Club Blog

Together We Can!

“We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it.” Numbers 13:30

“Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art…It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things that give value to survival.” C. S. Lewis

Create a space to meet with God. Mark 1:35 reminds us to find our strength through quiet times with our Father God the way Jesus did throughout the gospels. Ask God to fill you with His love and wisdom.

Read Numbers 13:27-33, 14:6-9. Ask the Holy Spirit to illuminate His Word deep in your heart. He longs to connect with you through His word.

Together We Can!

My heart longs to feel known. Whether my feelings are rational or not (usually not), I have felt alone, unheard, and misunderstood. At times, I haven’t been affirmed, comforted, or included. In these lonely times of my life, doubt creeps into my mind, and I start to think, does anyone love me? Then if I let these untrustworthy feelings take over, even God Himself can come into question. It’s hard to admit, but through my life, I have asked questions like, “Is He real, and if so can He be good in the midst of my painful circumstance?”

Universally, I am learning that when our hearts lose courage we need our friends to lend us their faith (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10).

In today’s reading, we saw two friends (Joshua and Caleb) whose faith carried the people of God across the finish line of a 470-year journey to fulfill God’s promise of their freedom. I believe we face similar challenges today which require interdependency amongst families and friends.

Sometimes our life’s greatest gifts, such as marriage and parenting, can stretch us beyond our current capabilities. We need each other’s help to face our “giants” and enter into God’s promise of hope-filled future. We aren’t designed to do life alone, no matter how self-sufficient some may seem. We all need to be loved and reminded how our all-powerful God uniquely created us in His image if we are to conquer our fears.

Do you have a Caleb or a Joshua in your life who will believe God for you when you can’t believe for yourself? I pray you do, friend, because we all need people with us in the ‘wilderness’ of our circumstances while we work things out with God.

If this is a season where you feel alone, begin this journey by asking Him to bring healthy friendships into your life. Holy Spirit, the Great Comforter, sees your pain and ministers to your needs until the right relationships come into your life (John 14:16).

This past Fall, I struggled with loneliness, so my husband and I asked God for help. We followed His prompting to invite a few friends over for prayer. I told them about the months I had spent with God in solitude, and they suggested that He was preparing me to share the things I was learning from His Word. As a result, I am writing this devotional through His power activated by the encouragement of my friends.

Being open with your struggles may feel scary for you. Asking for help can feel vulnerable, but it is a brave act of self-care that prevents soul damaging isolation. Cultivating intimate relationships requires transparency and openness even when we feel shame. As soon as we are honest with a trusted friend about our struggles, we are no longer alone in our circumstance; fear loses all its power (John 1:4-5).

Any fears you may currently be experiencing have no chance against God’s great love. The land described in the book of Numbers always belonged to the ancient Israelites, but they did not occupy it until there was agreement with God’s promise. We can believe His promises, dear one! He is for us, and I am confident that He will give us the courage to do all that’s in front of us today with great joy. Go get ’em, mamas, for you can certainly do it!

Questions to Ponder

Examine your heart before the Lord. What is your first response when your heart fills with fear?

God tells us in Psalms 55:22 that He wants us to bring our cares to Him. He knows His children’s hearts intimately, and He is the only one who can mend the broken places in us where love has not yet invaded. He will show you the friendship or the person; He will provide a safe place for you to be open.

Is there a healing work to be done in your heart? Write a letter to God about the ways you’ve been disappointed by your relationships.

Friendship is a gift from God to give us a picture of Heaven here on Earth. Invite God to heal any painful places you discover. He loves to provide for, deliver, save, and restore us so that we can experience the fullness of life through Jesus (John 10:10).

Faith-Filled Idea

Ask God to give you strategy for adjusting your relationships toward health as you write out your response to the following questions:

Are the relationships in your life intentional; did God ask you to pursue these friendships?

It would have been foolish for Caleb and Joshua to stay with the people in the wilderness if God had not asked them to be patient and wait for His promise (Proverbs 13:20).

Are your current friendships led by:

Fear or Forgiveness? (Hebrews 12:15)

Comparison or Celebration? (1 Thessalonians 5:11)

Jealousy or Generosity? (Romans 12:10)

The Quantity of friends you have or the Quality of your friendships? (1 Cor. 15:33)

Expectations of others or Acts of Service? (Mark 10:45)

I pray these questions spur a conversation with our Lord that bring clarity and healing into any hurting places of our lives. Bless you, friend.

Brynne is married to her answer to prayer husband, John. They have a biological firstborn daughter, Eden Joy age 2, and an adopted son, John Charles “Trey” who is almost 1. They are her life’s delight!

Brynne’s life is living proof of the transformative power of God’s grace. She has a fiery drive to chase after Him with her whole life and has continually been humbled by the unconditional love He has for us.

27 Comments on “Together We Can!”

I just reread this and it really spoke to me. I thought of a friend who I often think of fondly because she’s a great listener and sees the best in me. I have other friends like this, but this one friend stood out, so I can’t wait to share this study with her!

What great encouragement Brynne! I loved this revelation & exhortation- “The land described in the book of Numbers always belonged to the ancient Israelites, but they did not occupy it until there was agreement with God’s promise. We can believe His promises, dear one! He is for us, and I am confident that He will give us the courage to do all that’s in front of us today with great joy.” Believing & agreeing in God’s promises today!

Hi Brynne, This is excellent. I have a friend I would love to share this with. We started working together and I found how lonely and bitter she has become. I pray for her regularly, maybe printing out your lessons might help her know that I am there for her, not against her or that I am NO competition for her. I know God put me there at my place of work for a reason. I hope this is it.
Thank you for this,
Sincerely,
Wendy Mulia

Wow Brynne, this is amazing. I love how God is just pouring into you and in turn you are pouring into others. Your testimony above is a beautiful reminder of God’s love and passion for us, and that it is normal to have those sobering moments in life but not to let that steer you away from his promises or desires for you. I love how transparent and inspirational this posts is. Thanks for the encouragement!

Thank you so much Brittnie!! You are a woman that has done hard things very well. You have been an inspiration to me this year with the excellent quality of work you deliver on a consistent basis. And to top it off you are hilarious! I am proud to know you!

Thank you so much for sharing your story. I think we all have felt this way at one point or another and feel like we’re the only one experiencing it. You’ve given us such strength through this study to reach out–to God, to trusted friends and that is so great! It goes against our human nature! We like to just grit our teeth and go it alone, as if there’s strength in that! To be vulnerable is the key I feel and that’s a decision that we have to consciously make. Thank you again 🙂

Thank you for the affirmation Kristall! When I was given this topic I knew God was up to something! It was not a topic I was feeling confident about but I feel like God has done a restorative work in my heart through having to learn this lesson myself! I feel very encouraged by your comment.

Brynne this is outstanding. Definitely a gift you need to explore more. You have a God given ability to share truth with great clarity, humility and wisdom that others need to hear including me. Please continue to share what God is teaching you!